City Views, Country Dreams

Good evening from New York.

A full, Blue Moon is now rising, now that the sun has set on a truly beautiful last day of August.  Two full moons in one month qualify tonight's glow for the Blue Moon honor.

The U.S. Open Tennis tournament is now underway in our NYC borough of Queens.  I have watched some of the matches on television, and look forward to seeing more in the coming week.  Sometimes the players have to deal with intense heat and humidity, but so far this time around, they are quite lucky to not have the weather as an on court factor.

Earlier this week, I had great fun meeting my friend Elizabeth for a stroll downtown for lunch at Tea & Sympathy, a tiny Greenwich Village restaurant that contains a lot of British atmosphere in its menu and ambiance.

We arrived just as the T&S was opening for lunch and were able to claim a prime circular table by a window.  We shared an assortment of finger sandwiches, and this entitled me to my very own plate honoring a certain Royal Couple.  It's cucumber with cream cheese that joins Kate and William in the following photo.

It was such fun chatting away with Elizabeth, that we took a while to take charge of the sandwich assortment.  They were all delicious.

Of course, tea was called for, and we also felt it wise to add summer pudding for me and sticky toffee pudding for Elizabeth to our order.

Lots of perfectly ripe berries in that summer pudding.  The sticky toffee pudding with custard spoke for itself in a completely traditional way.

Eventually, we did leave the restaurant and benefited from a leisurely walk back uptown.  There is something truly priceless about visiting with friends.

The next few days saw me back at work.  The city seemed rather quiet during this week, which marks the end of many summer holidays.  Monday is our Labor Day, and for many will be a holiday.  Very soon many schools will start their fall semesters.

Some of the trees in Central Park are now showing a little bit of yellowing around the edges of their leaves.  Most of the trees' leaves are still deep green.  The lawns are still lush, and roses are still blooming.  

Tonight, after yet another pasta concoction, I enjoyed a perfectly ripe nectarine with rich cream and a few cookies (not home baked.)  The farmers markets continue to provide green veg, tomatoes, nectarines, plums, peaches.  Other earlier crops are beginning to show their age.

Sharing my table tonight with the nectarine is a refreshing glass of iced coffee, with lots of milk.  With the help of this coffee, I hope to be able to stay awake, in order to be able to watch some of tonight's tennis matches.  I am relieved that this week's Republican Party national convention has now ended.  

Our election date will arrive on the first Tuesday in November.  Perhaps I will be able to refrain from any post that might directly address this election.

This week I was delighted to receive a treat, via the Royal Mail.  I am now reading an advance copy of Move Over Darling, the most recent novel by Christine Stovell.  Chris is a born story teller, and I am really enjoying reading this book that is set in both Wales and New York City.  I do recommend your getting a hold of Move Over Darling when it is officially published this October.

My apartment now features various emerging towers of projects awaiting my time and attention.  Books, sketchbooks, pencils, pens, paint, brushes, yarns, crochet hooks, knitting needles, colorful fabric, embroidery threads and needles.  It seems that my diminished hours at the shop have quickly been appropriated by so many other interests.

It's all quite wonderful, and I have always found autumn to be a very energizing season.  Perhaps many of you all might feel the same?